On Thursday, both Jamiel and Randall Terry gave extraordinary interviews to Beliefnet editor Paul O'Donnell. Below, Jamiel explains that he wrote the article because "I wanted my father to see I'm not going to hell," but says that he still loves his father. Randall says that Jamiel is "bringing great sadness to our home and embarrassment to our family."

Did Out come to you?

I made contact with them.

Why did you feel you had to write it?

I felt it would be freeing for me. Most of our family friends had no idea that I was gay, and most of my mother's side of the family didn't know. For my own journey, I felt I needed to come out. My dad talks about the money. Originally, I was going to do an interview, which I would not have been paid for. When it changed to a freelance situation, they paid the normal fee.

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Is it the figure [$5,000] that your father's claiming?

No, it's lower than that.

Are you in financial difficulty [as your father said in his op-ed]?

Not anymore than any normal 24-year-old college student.

"If I could choose my life, I definitely would not choose to be gay, especially in the family that I live in."